Chapter Two Hundred and One
Charlie woke early the following morning and crept around the bedroom arranging gifts while Joey continued to sleep. Slipping her robe on, she headed out of the room, expecting to see Aden asleep on the couch. They had spent much of last night consoling him as he explained that Belle had left him letters and Irene had been giving them to him as and when she thought it was appropriate. The latest one had been a message from Belle permitting him to move on and find someone new.
On the couch, on top of the folded blanket and pillows was a note thanking them for being there and wishing them a very happy day. Smiling, Charlie put the note back down and headed into the kitchen. When asked, Joey had requested a fruit salad and orange juice for breakfast so Charlie busied herself with preparing it.
Ten minutes later, with Joey still in the land of nod, Charlie re-entered the bedroom and set the breakfast tray down. Then she escaped to the bathroom to get showered, changed and ready for what promised to be a delightful day.
Aden hadn't gone home. Liam would be there, although probably asleep and Aden had no inclination to see him. All he hoped now was that Nicole would throw him out so that she and Aden could remove him from their lives again. As far as Aden was concerned, Liam Murphy was nothing but poison and he resented the day that he had first shown up in the Bay.
Joey's eyes fluttered open and a grin spread across her face when she clapped eyes on Charlie standing at the end of the bed wearing some kind of red bow to cover the modesty of her otherwise naked form. Sitting up, Joey rubbed her eyes, still grinning.
"Are you my present?" she asked in wonder.
Feeling a little shy, Charlie moved forward and nodded. On command, she did a little twirl, making Joey laugh and feel excited all at the same time. Charlie turned and picked the tray up from the dresser and crept onto the bed with Joey to present it to her.
"Happy birthday," she said, kissing her lips.
Joey couldn't stop smiling, or peering at the exposed skin beneath Charlie's bow.
"I get to un-wrap you as soon as I finish this, right?" she asked with a naughty glint in her eye.
"You can un-wrap me whenever you like," Charlie promised.
Nicole woke up feeling heavy hearted as memories of her break up with Liam hit her hard – although, granted, not as hard as Aden and Liam had hit each other. She felt like an idiot for thinking that things were good between her and her now ex-boyfriend and that she had believed him to be the most gallant man in the world when he had relented and shown up to sweep her off her feet at the formal. And all along, he had just been feeling guilty for cheating on her with that Poppie girl. It made her feel sick.
Having finished eating, Joey put the tray on the floor and immediately pounced on Charlie, making her giggle. Pinning her girlfriend to the bed, Joey began to slowly disentangle her from her skimpy outfit. She trailed kisses along her jaw and down her neck, to her breasts, teasing every part of her that she managed to expose. When Charlie was finally undressed and still blushing, Joey kissed her way back up her body until she reached her lips.
"This is already the best birthday I've ever had," she whispered.
Ruby woke up in a fit of nerves. With Leah and VJ still visiting family and Charlie having already warned her that she and Joey would be out for the whole day, she and Geoff had arranged to spend the day together at the house. And the both hoped that today would be the day. Hurrying into the bathroom, Ruby got showered and ready for the day ahead, giddy with excitement.
By ten o'clock, Charlie and Joey were curled up in each other's arms, already exhausted but with the whole day still ahead of them.
"That's definitely the best way I've ever woken up," Joey said dreamily, snuggling a little closer to Charlie who kissed the top of her head affectionately.
"Do you want your presents now?" the police officer asked.
Joey sat up and blinked in surprise.
"That wasn't my present?" she asked.
"You didn't notice the big stack of gifts over there?" Charlie asked, nodding towards the dresser.
Joey stared with her mouth hanging open a little.
"For me?" she asked.
"Who did you think they were for?" Charlie giggled.
"I didn't notice them," Joey admitted.
Charlie sat up, still laughing.
"You didn't notice them?" she asked.
"Well, I was kind of distracted by the woman standing there wearing nothing but a bow around her beautiful body!" Joey remarked.
Charlie leant in and kissed her before slipping out of the bed and presenting her with a stack of gifts and a card.
Geoff had hardly slept but knew he had a while to go until Charlie and Joey left him and Ruby alone together so he headed over to the gym. Tony and John were bickering in a corner while Geoff lifted weights and contemplated the day ahead of him. He could hardly believe that he was actually going to sleep with Ruby. Last year, he had been utterly determined to stay a virgin until his wedding night and now he was preparing to get intimate with his third sexual partner. Sex had been such an issue with Nicole and he wondered now if he had only stopped taking life so seriously, then things might have worked out. Not that he was regretful about it now. He loved Ruby more than he thought possible and he truly hoped this time that things would work out. He'd adored Nicole and he's cared very deeply for Claudia but this felt like something else. Ruby had been there when he had been at his lowest ebb. His faith had been fading, Belle had died and Claudia had revealed that she had been lying to him about the baby she was carrying. But Ruby had been a breath of fresh air into his life. She had helped him restore himself and he hoped that he had succeeded in doing the same for her. And now, together, he hoped they were a genuine partnership.
"Okay, this is the last one," Charlie said.
She and Joey were still in bed, surrounded by masses of wrapping paper and ribbons. Joey had been elated with her gifts which included several DVD's, books - including a beautiful illustrated book of boats and the sea - a new watch, a photo album and a notebook for Joey to start putting in recipe ideas for what they hoped would become their new restaurant.
"Charlie, you've already given me so much. And you haven't told me what you have planned for the day..."
Charlie just smiled and presented her with a handmade token, similar to the one Joey had given her at Christmas.
"What's this?" Joey asked, noting Charlie's smirk.
"I stole your idea," Charlie said. "But I made it naughty."
She pointed to the token. Joey's eyes widened when she read the terms and conditions, drawn in felt tip pen.
This token entitles you to fulfil ANY one fantasy you desire. Charlie Buckton has no choice but to agree to do ANYTHING you would like her to.
"Seriously?" Joey giggled.
Charlie nodded.
"Do I have to do it today or can I think about it for a while?" Joey wondered.
Charlie pointed to the six month expiry date.
"I am going to keep this safe," Joey promised. "And then I'm going to come up with something really good!"
They kissed again, tumbling back on the bed before deciding that they really ought to get up and go out.
Liam hadn't bothered to get dressed. He felt utterly miserable that Nicole had found out about Poppie and left him. And he felt humiliated that he'd let Aden throw his weight around. In the kitchen, he fumbled with the kettle in order to make himself some coffee and then sighed when there was a knock on the door. He contemplated ignoring it but when the sound persisted, he strode into the lounge to open up. Poppie stood smiling on his doorstep.
At lunch time, having got somewhat distracted in the shower and then needing to spend time with Ruby so that Joey could thank her profusely for the Surf Board she, Ross and Morag had clubbed together to buy her, the couple finall. One random afternoon, Joey had mentioned always wanting to learn and knowing that Romeo had started teaching again, Ruby that thought it might be fun for them both – and Charlie if she wanted to – to attend.
"Where are we going?" Joey asked for the umpteenth time as Charlie continued to drive them out of town.
"You're really not getting the concept of a surprise, are you?" the police officer teased.
"Yeah, but..."
"Just wait and see and hopefully enjoy," Charlie instructed, reaching to squeeze her hand before returning it safely to the wheel.
Geoff arrived at Ruby's house with a dozen red roses and diabetic chocolates. Choosing to find the chocolate gesture sweet instead of bossy, Ruby thanked him and pulled him into her arms. They kissed tenderly.
"So um... have Charlie and Joey left already?" the blonde boy asked.
Ruby kissed him again.
"Yep," she confirmed. "We have the whole place to ourselves."
Deciding to take the lead, she caught hold of his hand and led him up to her bedroom.
"Charlie!" Joey squeaked when her girlfriend pulled into the very expensive restaurant Joey had read about in the newspaper when it won it's fifth award in a row.
"Happy?" Charlie checked.
"This place is award winning! It's meant to be amazing! I've wanted to eat here as soon as I first heard of it..."
Charlie grinned.
"That's why we're here," she explained.
"But..."
"If I can't treat you on your birthday then when can I?"
"But it's not like a special birthday or anything..." Joey ventured.
Charlie leant closer.
"Every single birthday of yours is special," she informed her, kissing her gently on the mouth and then climbing out of the car.
Martha was just about to knock on Liam's front door when it opened and a beautiful young woman left, kissing his cheek before she skipped down the path. Liam looked both embarrassed and surprised to see Martha with little Bambang in tow.
"What do you want?" he asked abruptly.
"Bambang has a music lesson with you..." Martha reminded him.
He looked puzzled for a moment before everything suddenly clicked into place. Immediately, he apologised and admitted that he'd forgotten.
"That's fine. Are we still okay to do it or should we come back another...?"
Martha trailed off, spotting a small bag of pills in Liam's hand.
"We'll come back," she decided before he had that chance to explain.
Then she hurried off.
"Okay, this is seriously the best food I have ever eaten," Joey stated.
She and Charlie had leisurely enjoyed a series of small starters and then a main course. They were both very full but the desserts on the specials board sounded extremely tempting.
"But don't tell Leah I said that," Joey added with a grin.
"Your secret is safe with me," Charlie promised, finishing her soft drink and politely asking the waiter for another.
"So, is this what you want your restaurant to be?" Charlie asked, eager to keep Joey talking about the idea so that her low self confidence didn't manage to convince her it wasn't realistic.
Charlie knew exactly what her girlfriend was capable of and if her dream of running her own fleet of trawlers wasn't going to happen then her ambition to cook for a living would. Charlie was intent on making sure of that.
"Oh yeah!" Joey enthused. "I've got ideas for menus and decorations and everything... even a floor plan."
"Seriously?"
"Well, it's only in my head at the moment but I'm going to put it all down in that lovely book you gave me," Joey said. "The closer I'm getting to starting this course and everything and the more you guys have been encouraging me, the more excited I am about this whole plan. For the first time, I actually believe that it could happen."
"I'm glad," Charlie said honestly. "And I am one hundred per cent sure that this dream of yours will come true."
"Well, it would never be possible if I didn't have you," Joey replied. "You are truly the best thing that has ever happened to me, Charlie."
Ruby and Geoff lay in bed together, cuddled up and feeling shy. After all the interruptions they'd had since they first decided they were ready to sleep together, it had finally happened. And it had been wonderful. Ruby felt like she was having her first time all over again and she was glad that it was with Geoff.
"Are you okay?" he asked gently.
Ruby nodded and hugged him.
"Everything feels pretty perfect right about now," she told him.
Having stuffed themselves, Charlie had surprised Joey with theatre tickets to see Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Clutching their programmes, the couple found their seats, directly in the front row which excited Joey no end.
"We're so close!" she squeaked, holding Charlie's hand tighter as they made their way along the row.
"That's the idea," Charlie grinned.
They sat down.
"And for the record, I gather this is the gayest thing I have ever been to," Charlie added, making Joey laugh.
"I am positive that you'll be bounding around in mardi gras before long!" she said.
Martha and Bambang were having dinner at the Diner. Bambang was disappointed about the lack of music lesson and Martha was generally feeling low. This time last year had been the worst period of her life. Having lost Jack, she thought she had lost everything. And then she'd met Hugo and he had helped her heal from the pain of loss. This time last week, she had truly believed that this was it and they would last forever. And then he'd dumped her. He'd dumped her for no good reason and she felt utterly lost.
"Are you okay, love?" Irene asked, approaching to check if they wanted any more drinks.
"Yeah," Martha said, unconvincingly.
Irene took it as her cue to sit down.
"If you need to talk, I'm always here," she said.
"Thanks, Irene."
Irene smiled at Martha and then at Bambang.
"Oh, hey, how did your music lesson go?" she asked the little boy.
He sighed dramatically and shook his head.
"It didn't," Martha said. "We found Liam looking a little confused with a bag of pills in his hand so we... left."
Irene looked alarmed.
"Do you think he fell off the wagon?" she asked.
"I honestly don't know," Martha said. "It looked like he'd just been with some girl. I don't like to judge but what about Nicole?"
Irene sighed and informed her of their break up.
Ruby saw Geoff out well in time for Charlie and Joey to arrive home, although they were so on top of the world – not to mention singing very loudly – that the teenager doubted they would have noticed her boyfriend stark naked in the middle of the living room.
"I take it Priscilla showed you a good time?" she remarked.
Joey responded by dancing her round the room to her own rendition of 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun'. Giggling, Ruby turned to Charlie helplessly, only to get swooped up by her mother as well.
"You can't be drunk," Ruby pointed out. "You were driving..."
Charlie spun her around again.
"No booze," Charlie promised. "Just high on life."
"Well, it looks good on you," Ruby said. "But I for one am exhausted so I think I'm going to go to bed."
"I'm definitely not exhausted," Joey said dreamily. "But we're going to bed too."
With that, she took Charlie's hand and dragged her off to their room. Shaking her head and losing herself in happy images of the day she had spent with Geoff, Ruby headed on up the stairs.
In their bedroom, Charlie and Joey fell down on the bed, crushing their lips together.
"Give me one second," Charlie eventually said, pulling away.
"What? Why?" Joey complained.
"Just... wait," Charlie said.
She leapt off the bed, grabbed a bag from underneath it, as well as her dressing gown and dashed out of the room. Bemused, Joey sank back against the pillows and waited, pondering their day and what a wonderful, happy time they had had. She was touched that Charlie had gone to such a lot of effort – not to mention alarming expense. She made her feel like the most special girl in the world.
Charlie checked her reflection one more time in the mirror, shook her hair out and made sure she looked as perfect as possible in the underwear she had purchased as well as the bow. Taking a deep breath, she wrapped her robe around her and headed back towards the bedroom, hoping to give Joey the perfect end to a perfect day. Stepping inside the bedroom, Charlie shut the door and shrugged her robe off. Joey sat up quickly.
"Wow," was all she was capable of saying. "Wow."
Next time... Leah bonds with Hazem, Aden takes Nicole joyriding and Joey decides how to use her token...
